Culturally Competent Practice - a Training Manual for Professionals working with Refugees, Migrants and People from Diverse Backgrounds

There is no formal training and qualification for cross cultural work practice in New Zealand at the present. Most people working in cross cultural settings and/or undertaking cross cultural work use skills acquired in other areas such as Social Work, Counselling, Community Development, Communications, Teacher Training and even Marketing. Organisations seeking to provide cultural training for their staff undertake this through contracts from a range of providers. However, there is not consistency in the standards, practices, knowledge and policies across these providers.

This Training Manual serves to start the process of defining the professional identity of cross cultural work, develop some standards for practice, and engage in the process of identifying the skills necessary for effective cross-cultural practice at both the individual practitioner and organisational level.

Dr. Love M. Chile is Academic Director of the Centre for Community Investment and Development, and Co-ordinator of Postgraduate Studies at the Institute of Public Policy, AUT University. He works primarily in community development, the human services and refugees and migrant developments. He was the Programme Director for Social Practice in the School of Health and Community Studies at UNITEC New Zealand from 1997 - 2004, a programme that trains professionals in Social Work, Community Development and Counselling.